Pages

Thursday, February 01, 2007

2000 Ramitello

I have had a number of Di Majo Norante wines, and they are always impressive. Their Don Luigi is also one of my Top 50 Cellar Picks, but that wine is made from the Montepulciano grape.

The 2000 Ramitello is a red wine fashioned from an uncommon blend of the Prugnolo (80%) and Aglianico (20%) grapes. The nose starts with chocolate and liquorice, followed by black cherry, vanilla, and earthy/wild aromas - very complex, very interesting. On the palate this wine coats the tongue with rich dark fruit and velvety tannins, with a rustic edge that leads me to imagine what wine tasted like in ancient times. Surprising depth and complexity for such an inexpensive wine.

This is not a subtle wine, and may not go over well with everyone - I find rustic, earthy wines like this do not always click with tasters. A perfect pairing for a hearty winter roast or osso buco. Score: 16/20, a great value at C$19.

Actually it was the Moli I thought of first -- didn't realize it was the same maker. Maybe it's got Prugnolo in it too. Anyway, I took it out when trying a new BYO Italian restaurant with a large group of friends last year. It was better than I expected it to be.

I guess another one not ftom Molise but similar would be Montepulciano Jorio (Umani Ronchi)? A particularly fine value and great with lasagna. I posted about the last vintage a while ago but there's new stuff out.